This should surprise no one. It has long been assumed New England Patriots owner
Robert Kraft was going to have to crack the coffers and shake free any loose
coins to retain Talib, and the Boston Herald confirmed this hunch Wednesday
morning by reporting the cornerback wants something close to
market-setting money.

The report also states Talib may take a discount, so
long as it is his choice and the final numbers are close to the four-year,
$32 million deal Brent Grimes recently signed with the Dolphins.

This isn't a shock. Most assumed Grimes' deal was
going to set the market for Talib. If Grimes walked away with three scoops on
his cone, then Talib was going to want the same. The money and years were
always going to be close.

Locating those numbers is not the challenge. It is
determining how the money is paid.

It seems safe to assume Talib is going to want a
straightforward deal with a good amount of guaranteed money. However, if the
Patriots are smart (and they typically are), they will structure the deal
in a manner that protects them from injury.

The four-year, $27 million deal Sebastian Vollmer signed
in New England last offseason set the groundwork for such an offer. While
lucrative at its core, the deal is only truly worth $16.5 million. Due to his
injury history, the offensive tackle agreed to earn the rest of the money
through playing-time and performance incentives.

In 2013, Vollmer was paid a $1.25 million base salary and
could have earned an additional $1 million by playing 90 percent of the
snaps and making the Pro Bowl. He suffered a broken leg in Week 8 and
did not finish the season, marking the second time in three years he appeared
in nine games or fewer.

If possible, New England would likely prefer to sign Talib
to a similar deal. Kraft has already noted that the corner's injury history is an
issue – as well it should be considering Talib fought a recurring hip ailment the last
two seasons and was unable to finish either of the last two AFC championship
games.

Talib proved early last season he has the ability to be
one of the game's top cornerbacks, which could make him look like a bargain at
an average of $8 million per season if he continues on that trajectory. But
given his injury issues, it's also easy to envision his contract looking like
an albatross in a few years.

It's unknown if he will be open to a prove-it deal, and
there is not much incentive for him to agree to those terms. Unless Talib is
unwilling to leave New England, there will be plenty of teams willing to roll
the dice to acquire his talent.

So forget about the discount. The Patriots need to convince
Talib to bet on himself.